Wichita hosting PBA Tour Players Championship with plenty of Shocker bowling ties
Wichita will host another major PBA Tour championship, this time the PBA Players Championship to kick off the 2024 season this week at Northrock Lanes.
There will be Wichita State bowling connections everywhere when qualifying begins on Wednesday with an 88-player field competing for the $100,000 top prize.
Four current members of the Shockers’ defending national championship team — Ryan Barnes, Brandon Bonta, Spencer Robarge and TJ Rock — were granted a commissioner’s exemption to compete in the pre-tournament qualifier. All four advanced to make the main field.
Several WSU alumni have gone on to become stars on the PBA Tour, as the field is littered with former Shocker stars like Sean Rash, Chris Barnes, Packy Hanrahan, Francois Lavoie, Jake Peters, Kris Prather, Mitch Hupe, AJ Chapman, Joe Grondin and Wesley Low Jr.
Because the event is a major championship, Wichita will play host to all of the superstars on the PBA Tour. Jason Belmonte (2022) and EJ Tackett (2023) have been named the Player of the Year the last two seasons and figure to be in contention this week in Wichita, as does Anthony Simonsen, who won last year’s PBA Wichita Classic.
A cut to the top 24 for round-robin match play will take place after the fourth qualifying round is complete on Thursday evening. Friday will feature match play in the morning and evening, while Saturday’s match play will feature a cut down to the top five for the stepladder finals.
The championship will be decided on Monday, Jan. 15, with the stepladder finals beginning at 4 p.m., televised nationally on FOX. Tickets for the stepladder finals are $30 for general admission and $5 for standing-room only. They’re available through PBA.
This story was originally published January 10, 2024 at 2:36 PM.
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